CHAPTER 17
ZANE
The moment Mia leaves, I want to follow her.
My whole body leans toward it, my muscles tense as if they need to act, as if it’s an uncontrollable instinct.
But I hold on. I hold on with all the strength I have, because I know there is a line I can’t cross.
Mia has spent her entire life being locked away, imprisoned, and I will never be someone who makes her feel that way.
I fire off a message to Mia, my fingers almost trembling as I type, the screen flickering in front of me. I don’t even know what I’m doing.
“Mia… please. I need to talk to you. Can we just figure this out? I don’t know what Carter told you, but it’s not true. You’ve got to trust me on this.”
I pause, my thumb hovering over the screen, then add another message, my frustration leaking out through the words.
“I know I don’t always say what I mean, but I don’t want you to think I’m some kind of asshole. I never meant to hurt you.”
I lean back against the wall, chewing on my bottom lip, my mind racing. She probably won’t even respond. She probably hates me now. But I can’t just leave it like this. I can’t .
“Please, Mia… talk to me.”
I send the message and stare at the screen, my chest tightening with every passing second.
Why does it feel like I’m standing on the edge of something I can’t control?
She silenced me completely and left without looking back.
And I hated it. I hated it more than anything.
“Are you going to Santino’s party again?” Carter asks, but there’s no surprise in his voice. Just that usual exasperation. Like I’m predictable.
He has the fucking nerve to act like nothing happened.
I shrug. It’s not like I care much about these LA parties. They serve a purpose—to make connections, to gain exposure.
People pay a lot of money for a top-notch tattoo artist who works on the skin of celebrities. But today… I’m not in the mood for that today.
Mia is mad at me. And it shouldn't affect me this much. But it does. Because I know I fucked up. And that girl is never mad at me. Ever.
I didn't realize how much I liked the way she looked at me, like I was her fucking salvation, until I saw the look of disappointment on her face. It was like something in me just... snapped.
I know I can't push her too hard. She's had enough people trying to shape her, trying to pin her down.
She should be here, eating her waffles, laughing in that impulsive, messy way of hers—not out there, alone, doing who knows what.
But it doesn't matter how I feel.
What matters is that I need to understand what happened for her to leave like that.
And fucking Carter has the answer.
I don’t give a fuck if he has some sort of infatuation with me. I’ve always just let it go because it wasn’t worth ruining our partnership over.
It doesn’t mean that just because I fuck guys the same way I fuck girls, I fall head over heels for anyone who crosses my path. It’s not my problem if he wants me. I never saw him like that.
I don’t give a damn about his bullshit—he’s not getting away with this.
My fists tighten, the anger coursing through me like electricity. He knows something. He has to.
“What the fuck did you say to her?” The growl comes out before I can stop myself, my head snapping to Carter. My shoulders are rigid, fists clenched at my sides.
“The truth,” he says, shrugging as if he hadn’t just thrown gasoline on a fire.
My jaw clenches. “What would be the truth?”
“That you don’t want to be married to her.”
The silence that follows his words is thick, heavy.
Something breaks inside me. Slow. Sharp. Painful. Like glass cracking before it shatters.
My answer comes sharply. “Who said I don’t want to be married to her?”
Carter blinks. For the first time, he looks genuinely surprised.
Maybe I am too, any doubts or questions regarding my marriage to Mia are not disrespectful to Carter, but to me and Mia.
It irritates me that he told them things that are not actually true.
“Zane, you were drunk,” he insists. “You always do stupid things when you’re drunk.”
My laugh is short, humorless. “Carter, you need to stop talking shit like you know me, man.”
He narrows his eyes. “But I know you. All these years, as you’ve built your career, I’ve been by your side. I was the first one to support you.”
“And I'm grateful for that, but it doesn't mean you can control my fucking life or what I do with it.”
He crosses his arms, staring at me. “So you really want this?” His voice holds disbelief. “You want to be married to Mia?”
I stare back at him. And I realize there is no hesitation inside me.
No doubt.
“Yes,” I say firmly.
And it might be the craziest, most impulsive thing that's come out of my mouth in years, but I don't regret being with her, because being with Mia means I don't have to pretend to be something I'm not.
I know this mess started with a drunken mistake, but beyond our wedding, everything we did, the conversations.
It was all real to me and I don't want to lose that.
Carter’s eyes narrow. “That’s a joke.”
“No. But you are.” I step closer, my body tight with anger. Every muscle in me screams to take action, to end this right here, right now. “If you put shit on her head, I’ll fucking end you. Mark my fucking words. She knows me more in one month than you ever did in five years.” I grit my teeth, barely holding myself back. “We’re partners, colleagues at best. If you meddle in my life again, if you hurt her again, we’re fucking done.”
The words come out like a warning, sharp and cold. My jaw clenches, the rage simmering beneath the surface. I don’t care how long I’ve known him, or how he thinks he has any claim on me.
Cross this line, and I won’t hesitate.
“Zane.”
“Enough. I don’t want you here when I get back.”
He opens his mouth, but I already move away, pushing the door hard and leaving before he can try to justify himself.
The cool night air hits my face, but it does nothing to calm the chaos in my head.
My chest rises and falls with heavy breaths. I run my hand through my hair, frustrated, restless.
Fuck, I should have ignored my moral compass and gone after her, I'm such an idiot.
Should I go after her now? Does she want me to go? What if she doesn't want to see me? I'm going crazy without her here.
My hand slides to the phone in my pocket.
I stare at the screen, waiting for a message. Nothing. Just silence.
I hit the location app, but she's learned to turn hers off.
My wife is gone.
The thought hits me harder than I expect, catching me off guard.
My wife.
I didn’t hesitate to call her that—not out loud, not even in my own head.
And that realization makes me feel even more like an idiot. I’ve spent so much time avoiding her, pushing her away, convincing myself this was temporary.
But now she’s gone, and I have no idea where she is.
And it feels like acid in my chest.
I don't know exactly what to say to Mia. Maybe something like, " Hey, I grew up in a family where any attempt at communication turned into violence, so I never really learned how to talk about things that matter. I don’t know how to explain why it’s okay for us to be married—I just know that I want it to be."
But that sounds pathetic.
I run a hand through my hair, exhaling sharply.
I'm a loser.
So I wait. I wait with every muscle in my body begging for her to come back.
And that's hell.
Damn, it's already been five hours and I can’t find her.
Every minute that passes makes me consider calling Kyle more seriously. And I never call Kyle.
But Mia is gone. And even though I know she can handle herself—indeed, precisely because I know what she’s capable of—I can’t shake the feeling that something could go very wrong.
My finger hovers over my brother’s name in the contact list, ready to swallow my pride and ask him to track her number. Then, as if it were some cosmic joke, my phone vibrates in my hand.
Mia's name flashes on the screen.
I'll answer right away.
"Please come home," I beg, and my voice comes out more pathetically begging than I'd like.
"I always love it when they do that puppy dog voice. Men are so alike," responds a voice that is definitely not Mia's.
I freeze.
"Where's Mia?"
"She's here, but, uh… let's just say she's in no condition to talk. Or hear. Or stand on her own two feet, really," the voice replies, clearly amused. "Just so you know, I was against calling you to come get her, but I believe in democracy, so I'll send you my location. And hurry."
The call drops before I can answer.
I stare at the phone for a moment, trying to process what the hell just happened.
Excellent.
Now, not only has Mia been missing for hours, but apparently some random stranger is deciding whether I'm worthy of rescue or not.
The location takes me to an open space near a bonfire, with a group of people spread out there, some drinking, others dancing, and a guy with dreadlocks trying to balance a beer bottle on his head.
And then I see her.
Mia is passed out on a blanket on the floor, her face too relaxed for someone who is normally ready to rip someone's head off.
Beside her, three girls stare at me as if I were an exotic animal about to perform some trick.
The one holding Mia's phone smiles when she sees me, crossing her arms.
"Oh, so you're the asshole. Well, it's a small world, and that’s juicy," she says, her tone dripping with sarcasm and amusement. Her face looks strangely familiar, like I should know her, but I can’t place her for the life of me.
"What?"
"You. The guy Mia married. Do your siblings know? "
But what the fuck? Why is she asking about my kin?
I run my hand over my face, feeling a headache coming on.
"Who the hell are you?"
"Audrey Ross," she replies casually. "But you can call me trouble, because that's what you have now for hurting Mia. I don't know what disappoints me more, your shitty memory or your terrible skills at keeping a woman happy. You used to be my favorite Hill. " She says and I roll my eyes.
My brain freezes for a second.
Ross.
"Wait, Ross like—"
"Connor Ross's little sister, your brother's best friend," she finishes for me, smiling as if amused by my existential crisis. "Yeah, that's the one."
I close my eyes for a moment. This can't be happening. Wait.
"Is Seth Evans here too?" I ask, my mind already racing with how I can get Mia and make a quick escape if he’s around. People who get under Audrey’s skin don’t have a great track record—if they even have a track record at all.
“Why would Seth be here?” she asks even more irritated and Liv laughs.
“Is he?”
“No!” she yells.
So he might be here, but she doesn't know it.
“Please stop looking around like a pathetic man,” Audrey grumbles. “The boys, including your brother, are busy on a mission or something. So no, he’s not here. I’m here with other friends.”
Weird. Since when does Audrey Ross hang out with anyone who isn’t Seth Evans? And why isn’t Seth in his usual weirdly protective mode? Something’s off.
"So Kyle already knows that you were stupid enough to drunkenly marry a girl you met like, what, a month ago?" Audrey asks, clearly delighted by the information.
"Be still," I say, massaging my temples.
She shrugs. “I was just asking. If I were you, I'd be more concerned about getting Mia out of here before she wakes up and decides she wants to fight you. She was pretty upset before she passed out, and honestly, she passed out after looking at a picture on my phone.”
I look at Mia again, and even unconscious, she looks ready to cause chaos.
Beside Audrey, two other girls watch the scene as if they were watching a reality show of dubious quality.
"I'm Liv," one of them says, raising a hand. "This is Andi."
Andi just nods, looking indifferent.
"Are you friends with Mia?" I ask.
Liv lets out a laugh. "Tricky definition. But yeah, we like her."
"She's our girl now," Audrey adds with a soft grin. "And you... you look like someone who’s going to drive themselves crazy trying to keep up with her. I love that for you."
I don't answer. Mainly because, honestly, she's not wrong.
But first, I need to get Mia out of here before she wakes up and decides to turn this place into a battleground—with me as the main target of her fury.
“I appreciate you calling me, I can take care of Mia from here.”
“I put my number in her phone,” Audrey says. “I’ll check on her and if I suspect anything, I’ll have your brother track you down.”
Kyle is better than Seth Evans, could be worse.
“Can you not mention any of this to my brother?” I ask and she looks at me confused.
"Why?"
“Because my life is none of his business.”
“Okay,” she says with a shrug, but her eyes shine with understanding. It seems little Ross is also looking to distance herself from her family.
“I won’t say anything,” she says finally, but adds, “But stop being an asshole to her. If you break her heart, I’ll break your dick in half.”
“I get it, little miss trouble.”
"Babe," a man I don’t recognize walks up to her, slipping his arm around her waist. He looks at her like she’s some trophy he’s proud to show off, and I frown for a moment. I highly doubt Connor Ross even knows this guy exists. “Who is the guy?”
"Just an idiot from my family," she says, her tone flat with boredom.
"Brat," I mutter under my breath, but she catches it and flips me off.
The guy glances at me again, and a flash of recognition crosses his face before he grins.
"I know you. You’re that famous tattoo artist who does tattoos for all the Hollywood stars. Dude, your tattoos are legendary. I’m a huge fan of your work."
"Thanks," I reply, and he turns his gaze back to Audrey. "You’re quite the network."
"Lucky for you I only have eyes for one," she says with a smile, and I almost laugh. "I’ll finish talking to Zane and meet you inside, okay?"
The guy doesn’t budge, but her friends step in, chatting him inside with ease. He goes without protest, and Audrey turns back to me, her eyes scanning me carefully.
I don't know what parallel world we're living in, but I highly doubt any guy would stand a chance against Seth. They've both been obsessed with each other since they were kids.
It’s not my fucking problem, and I’ve got enough on my plate as it is. So, I pick Mia up, ready to get the hell out of here.
Only, Audrey calls me right as I’m about to leave.
“We have a deal. I’ll shut up about your crazy marriage and you shut up about my boyfriend.”
“Fine by me,” I shrug. It’s not like I have any interest in calling my brothers and announcing it. I avoid my brothers. I intend to keep it that way. I turn away, but Audrey keeps her hold on me.
“Don’t be a complete stranger, they miss you, you know that?” Audrey says in a tone that almost reminds me of the sweet little girl she once was.
“I'm busy.”
“I think Kyle and Abby will end up getting married soon, it's just a matter of time before they come out for good.”
“I'm happy for them.”
“Zane.”
“Hm,” I say, not wanting to look her in the eye, because that means my past. And I have no interest in my past.
“They love you. Abby still listens to that KPOP group you like and talks about you. Every time. Your sister is still the same heartless bitch, I refuse to talk about her,” she points out and I laugh and then she turns to me. “I know Kyle misses you, I’m not that close to him. But, he hasn’t been the same since you left.” No wonder I'm her favorite Hill. She hates my sister and everyone is scared of Kyle, so that leaves me.
I miss them too.
But it doesn't matter.
Because I can't go back there, not without feeling like I'm dying inside.